When the Past is no longer hidden
by klaroline-heart
Summary: Caroline's mom has died and an old face returns home where secrets are revealed. (One Shot) (Klaroline/Steroline)


**Hey guys, This one just came into my head the other day had no idea how i was going to end it but i actually like the ending.**

* * *

Caroline laid in a ball under her covers, her eyes blurred while the tears she shed rolled down her cheeks.

She was broken, unable to control her pain.

She barely remembered Stefan carrying her home after the service and promising to visit her in the morning.

She felt like glass, If someone pushed her she would shatter into pieces.

Her phone kept ringing from beside her, the annoyingly jolly song that came from her speaker made her angry so much that she grabbed the phone and threw it against the wall, Nobody could call her then so she could deal with her grief alone.

She sat up and looked around her bedroom, she was already used to the quiet from living alone but now it just felt empty.

She climbed from her bed slipping the horrid black dress that she had to wear to bury her mother, something she'd hoped she wouldn't need to do until she was at least fifty but that wasn't how it was meant to be and she hated not being able to change the inevitable.

She walked to her draws pulling out her pajama shorts and spaghetti strapped top preparing herself for a shower but before she could walk out of her room she heard the thumping on her door.

* * *

A sound of worry and desperation Caroline sighed frustrated as she grabbed her dressing gown from the back of her door

"I'm fine Stefan just leave me alone" She called out aggravated.

Reaching the door she noticed Stefan had closed the blind.

Pulling the door roughly almost of it's hinges she snapped angrily

"I'm fine Stef-" She paused mid-sentence when she looked at the person before her.

Her heart sank at the sight of his sad expression "Hello Love" Caroline opened the door wider allowing him into her home.

"What are you doing here?" She vexed as he closed the door behind him.

"I came to see you? I heard about your mother" Caroline rolled her eyes

"Oh Wow! You came to see how I was now that my mom is dead, where were you when I needed you? When I needed somebody to tell me i was going to get through it all. Let me guess Damon called you?"

He nodded watching as her demeanor changed

"He doesn't like me and Stefan hanging out together. Keeps saying that I'm not good for him."

Klaus' eyed her confused

"You and Stefan?" Caroline snickered

"You didn't know? I thought that would be the first thing Damon would tell you to get you to come and see me. Why are you even here Klaus? You've been gone for three years without so much as a phone call"

Klaus sat on the stool beside him

"I wanted to see if you were okay. I know what your mom meant to you and I wanted to be here for you"

Caroline moved to the door pulling it open

"You've seen me now go! I don't want your cheating ass in my house again"

Klaus didn't want to start an argument with her least of all on the day of her mom's funeral.

* * *

Caroline felt the anger surge in her body as she slammed the door as he walked out.

"Good Riddance" she yelled as she spun around looking at her empty house, the house that they brought together, She remembered the joy and love that filled her heart when he showed her their new home but she didn't expect him to walk out and leave her a year later for his receptionist.

Her eyes fell on the photograph that still hung on the kitchen wall of their first holiday in Florida.

She pulled it from the wall angrily throwing it to the ground, It wasn't enough she needed more.

She began raiding her cupboards pulling glasses and dishes smashing them without a second thought as she screamed her hatred for the cancer that stole her mom

or the dead beat boyfriend who walked out on her when she was pregnant with his child,

or the hatred for herself for climbing onto that bed and letting the surgeon rip her child from her womb because of her selfish need to not be alone.

* * *

The following morning Stefan walked into the kitchen panicking as he rushed through the house to find Caroline laying on the couch a bottle of vodka in her hand and glass scattered around the floor.

"What happened? Are you okay?" Caroline looked at him hazily

"That dick showed up! Thought he could make me feel better. Thought he could take away the past two years."

Stefan pulled her into his arms to carry her to the bathroom

"Come on, Let's get you cleaned up" he said softly holding her close.

Stefan sat her on the floor below the shower head as the cold water woke her up from her drunken haze.

"I can't believe the cheek, He shows up thinking I would be civil, that I would welcome him into my home and be his best friend again"

Caroline said aloud as the water poured over her head

"I know you hate him right now but maybe you should talk to somebody. You have a lot of hatred towards him for many reasons and I know that better than anyone. Caroline looked up at him through the curtain of blond soggy hair covering her face

"Who could I talk to? Elena and Bonnie don't even know what I did"

Stefan rested his hand on her cheek gently rubbing circles with his thumb

"How about we start with them and work your way up to him. He has a right to know"

Caroline exhaled deeply

"Fine! Let me get changed first"

Stefan nodded throwing her the towel as she stood in up

"I'll make a start on cleaning the glass" He said as he opened the door to leave

"Thanks Stefan."

Stefan turned back for a second smiling softly, He knew he'd do anything for her, she was his best friend and he was falling in love with her.

* * *

Caroline stood on the front porch of her best friends home taking a deep breath as Elena and Bonnie both came towards her smiling softly

"Hey Care, You okay?"

Caroline tried to control the tears threatening to fall

"I have something to tell you both, Something I've been keeping to myself for a while"

Both girls came towards her ushering her inside as the tears finally spilt.

"Hey Brother, Want a drink?" Damon asked as he came onto the porch raising his glass of bourbon at Stefan

"You called him? She was doing fine and you had to ruin it by calling him"

Damon peeked inside to see the girls hovered around on the couch as he pulled the door up

"She's not yours Stefan. She'll never love you like she loves him. They may have their differences but you and I both know you're going to get your heart broken"

Stefan sat on the steps puffing angrily

"I love you both and I don't want to see either of you hurt, You've been best friends since you were in diapers but she loves Klaus she has since she was fifteen years old and time and time again they prove that no obstacle is to large for them to get around and I really don't wanna see my little brother destroyed by it"

The door opened revealing the tearful trio.

"You need anything care just call one of us please" Caroline nodded as she pulled her friends into a hug once more before she walked towards Stefan's car while he followed closely behind her.

"What was that all about?" Damon questioned as they climbed into the car

"It's not for us to say" Elena said as she walked back into the house.

* * *

Stefan looked over at Caroline as she sat twiddling her thumbs nervously "You okay? What the girls say?"

Caroline was in her own world and hadn't even heard what Stefan said until he pulled up outside an apartment building

"Care?" Caroline finally took notice of her surroundings

"Ah. Sorry. I'll meet you later" She climbed from the car quickly slamming the door behind her leaving Stefan dumbfounded.

Reaching the entrance doors she rang the number Elena had given her

"Mr Mikaelson' office" Caroline took a deep breath

"I have an appointment"

The door buzzed to allow her entrance, she walked into the business type apartment building, She gulped aloud nervously as she made her way to the office of Mr Mikaelson.

Reaching the office she noticed a beautiful brunette receptionist

"Here we go again" she thought to herself as she spun around to leave

"Caroline?" She turned meekly her cheeks revealing a soft pink glow

"What're you doing here?" Caroline took a deep breath

"We need to talk" The words rang alarm bells in Klaus' head, We need to talk in Caroline form was always bad.

"Come with me! Gia, Cancel my morning appointments please"

The receptionist nodded "Right on it".

Caroline followed him through the formal business hall until she reached his consultation room.

"So you're a fully fledged doctor owning your own clinic"

Caroline questioned as she looked around the room

"Yeah. Took a while but got here in the end"

Caroline nodded as she took a seat as far away from Klaus as possible

Klaus sat in his chair placing his stethoscope on the table as his eyes stayed fixed to hers.

"What you want to talk about?" Caroline was suddenly reminded why she needed to talk with him

"Well. There's something you need to know. well deserve to know"

Caroline opened her bag she pulled out and envelope handing it to him

"What's this?" He questioned confused but Caroline merely nodded towards it urging him to open it.

Inside was a letter, One she'd written a thousand times.

A letter that explained how she felt and what she needed to do was for the best.

The photograph of a small child in a hospital nursery.

"Where is she?" Klaus questioned holding the letter up so that the photograph faced Caroline

"With her adoptive family"

Klaus' eyes grew dark and his face angry

"You had my baby and you gave her away to complete strangers?!"

Caroline backed away from him slightly as he roared angrily at her

"You wouldn't understand, I didn't tell you because you wouldn't understand"

Klaus' expression just grew more volatile as she spoke

"Why the bloody hell didn't you tell me?"

That was it, Caroline snapped

"I tried too! I tried to call you at work but you weren't answering so I thought I should tell you when you got home but by the time I arrived home all of your things were gone and you with them. I wanted to terminate.

I wanted to rid myself of ever having to see any part of you again even if it meant my own child but Stefan talked me out of it.

Said if I really didn't want it then I should give the baby up for adoption. We kept my pregnancy hidden until I began getting bigger and that was when he arranged a trip to Chicago and I gave birth there.."

Klaus sighed as he fell back into his seat.

He couldn't look at her; He felt betrayed although he had ran away with another woman.

"Look, I didn't come here for you to shout at me and tell me what I should have done, I came here to tell you that you are a father and that despite what happened you deserve to know"

Caroline climbed from the chair taking the letter from the desk as she went but before she could move Klaus clamped his hand around her wrist

"Is she happy?"

Caroline nodded

"She lives in town. She's a happily little girl and her parent's adore her"

Klaus looked up at her noticing the pain in her expression

"And you don't miss her?"

Caroline looked at him darkly

"Of course I do! You don't realize how hard it is seeing one of your friends raising your child, the child that I should have been raising with you in our home"

Klaus knew only one person who had a small child since he'd arrived

"Alaric and Jo? Their baby?"

The tears poured down her cheeks as she nodded

"Jo was stabbed in her stomach by her brother when she was a teenager, He was then admitted to a facility but it left Jo with a weak womb.

When Olivia was born I didn't want to let her go but then Stefan suggested Jo and Alaric.

They both knew the truth about her but nobody else knew she was ours until I told Elena and Bonnie the truth"

Klaus looked down at the floor as he finally realized what his leaving did to her.

He left for another woman and broke Caroline into a million pieces

"I'm sorry" was all he could say as he reached out for her hand

"I should have been here, you shouldn't have gone through that alone"

Caroline pulled her hands away wiping the tears from her cheeks as a small smile appeared

"Don't you get it? I wasn't alone. I had Stefan. I fell in love with him because he was by my side when you were nowhere to be seen. I'm sorry Klaus because we could have been something good but.. You destroyed it and pushed me into the arms of my best friend so Thank you for making me realize that I deserved better"

Caroline stood from the chair tucking the letter back into her bag as she walked through the door leaving her past behind her.

* * *

Walking up the path leading to the white front door she was greeted with a wide smile from the beautiful green eyed girl as she stood on the door step

"Auntie Care. I thought you weren't coming today?"

Caroline shock her head

"Me not come and see my favorite girl? Never! I thought we could build a castle in the back yard and then have a tea party with mommy and all those teddies of yours?"

Olivia smiled brightly

"Yay! Mommy. Mommy. Auntie Care said we can have a tea party"

Caroline trailed into the house after Olivia closing the door up to find Klaus' car parked across the street.

"Easy monkey, Give me a chance to get in the door then"

Caroline called as she closed the door up.

Caroline followed Olivia through the house out to kitchen to find Jo, Alaric and Klaus stood talking.

"Oh. I'm sorry guys, I should have told you"

Jo shook her head

"it's okay Caroline. He's just curious, He wanted to meet her"

Caroline looked at Klaus as he smiled watching the tiny girl running around in the back yard preparing her soft play blocks for her castle walls

"Auntie Care? Are you coming to play?"

Caroline smiled softly

"I've been given my orders"

Klaus reached out grabbing Caroline's wrist

"Do you mind if I join in?"

Caroline looked at Alaric and Jo questioning if it was okay with them but they both nodded

"Okay, Come on"

Klaus and Caroline sat giggling with their daughter watching as she pretended to be the princess in the castle.

It broke Klaus' heart that he couldn't have this special moment everyday but then he looked at Jo and Alaric's bright smiles and realized Olivia was never his and Caroline's to keep she was theirs.

* * *

 **R &R**

 **A/N: So this wasn't a Klaroline love story it was about two people falling in and out of love but creating another life for somebody else. I didn't want Klaus coming back and them falling in love i wanted it to be clear that she was in love with Stefan but that he still held a piece of her heart because of their daughter.**


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